Would pick Pujara ahead of Rohit: Sourav Ganguly

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has been known to cross the line with some of the things he either says or does. Being the president of the CAB as well as one of India’s more successful skippers of yesteryear, it is indeed safe to admit that Ganguly has developed somewhat of a thick skin in recent times.

In more recent times, Ganguly has given his opinions on several cricketing matters. The most recent of these revolves around the selection of Rohit Sharma. While many have lashed out at the Indian selectors regarding the same, it seems clear that the decision to go ahead and persist with Sharma has not gone down too well with Ganguly as well.

Speaking about the selection, the former India skipper went ahead and agreed with the idea of giving Rohit a longer rope. However, he also went on to criticize the fact that not many have taken the effort to push Rohit’s Test career forward.

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Rohit’s comparative Test and ODI records are miles off with his average 36 and 42 in Tests and ODIs respectively.

“I agree with the system that whoever is picked in the Indian team is being given a long rope. But I think Rohit Sharma’s talent in Test cricket has not pushed forward as it has done in the limited-overs formats. He has struggled more on overseas tours and on pitches which offer more seam and bounce,” he told India Today.

Ganguly went on to add that the selectors were fair to allow him a few more chances. However, he went on to disagree with the fact that the 29-year old will add some value in the batting lineup, going on to add that Cheteshwar Pujara is a safer bet compared to Rohit.

“I think he has got a fair rope, but I don’t think the selectors are going to find anything more about Rohit with the 13 Test matches we play in India. I would pick Pujara any day ahead of Rohit because he’s a better player at the Test level. His record in India is as good as Rohit and he got a hundred in South Africa as well,” Ganguly further added.

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